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Retired firefighter breathes new life into classic fire truck

Retired Philadelphia firefighter Bill O'Brien stands on the running board of his 1934 International Harvester Fire Truck on Tuesday morning, Feb. 12, 2013, that he restored along with the help of his wife, Donna. The O'Briens have a number of other restored cars, including a '56 DeSoto, '39 DeSoto and a '27 Model T.

Doug Engle/ Ocala Star-Banner

By Andrew FillmoreCorrespondent

Published: Thursday, February 14, 2013 at 1:43 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, February 14, 2013 at 1:43 p.m.

A sticker on the dashboard of Bill O’Brien’s 1934 International fire truck reads: “It’s Never Too Late to Have a Happy Childhood.”

“You can grow old but not up,” said O’Brien, 71, a retired Philadelphia firefighter, as he operated the controls on his 11,000-pound bright red truck.

“My wife, Donna, and I drive the truck in the Ocala Christmas Parade, and we were just in the Williston Veterans Parade in November. We drive the truck around town, and when I mentored some youngsters, we used to treat them to rides. I’ve even used the truck in a few funerals,” O’Brien said.

The couple plans to drive the fire truck from Ocala to an emergency vehicle show in Jacksonville later this month.

The truck now has 4,364 original miles on the odometer, will cruise at about 55 to 60 miles per hour and gets about 7 to 8 miles per gallon, O’Brien said.

It was built in 1934 and delivered in 1936.

“The open cab and doors of the 1934 remind me of some of the equipment I served on,” O’Brien said, “I remember riding on the back of our trucks.”

This truck was used by the Luverne, Minn., fire department until 1961 and then sat outside until O’Brien found it and bought it.

He did a complete “body off” restoration less than 10 years ago, which took about 18 months. He replaced the original engine with one from a Chevrolet school bus.

“The truck is valued in the range of $25,000,” O’Brien said.

The truck, despite being outdated, could still get the job done at a fire, O’Brien insists. It has all the necessary gear, including a spotlight, bell, axes, fire extinguishers, ladders a 200-gallon water tank, a reel with a one-inch hose and a 500-gallon-per-minute rotary water pump with a four-inch intake, two-and-a-quarter-inch discharge and compound and pressure gauges to monitor the flow.

O’Brien, a native of Philadelphia, served with the city’s fire department from 1963 through 1994, including a stint on the fire boat “Delaware” on the river of the same name.

O’Brien marked his 1934 International fire truck with the number 29 for the station he served with in Philadelphia.

“My great-great-grand uncle, David Humphries, was the first paid Philadelphia firefighter to be killed in the line of duty when his ladder collapsed in 1872,” O’Brien said.

O’Brien retired in 1995 and moved to southwest Ocala where they live today.

O’Brien’s affinity for vehicles goes well beyond fire engines. He has restored several classic cars, including a 1951 Studebaker truck and a 1957 DeSoto chopped to half length.

Donna and Bill O’Brien team up on many of the restorations, with Donna doing the upholstery work.

One of their joint ventures has been her 1939 DeSoto Opera Coupe with a 345-cubic-inch hemi engine from a 1957 DeSoto Adventurer.

“There were only 257 of these models with the fold-up rear seats made,” O’Brien explained. The seats could be folded up during the week to accommodate businessmen’s wares and then on weekends fold down for the kids,” O’Brien explained.

“I love the look of it,” Donna O’Brien said about long sweeping curves and art-deco type touches on the fenders of the 1939 DeSoto.

In the O’Brien’s multi-car garage, next to the 1939 DeSoto, is a 1927 Model T Ford “no hood” style hot rod with a 255 cubic-inch Mercury engine topped by dual, two-barrel carbs.

Stickers from past shows where the “T” was displayed cover the inside of one door and several other areas.

One of the most recent additions to the O’Brien stable is a red and black factory-original 1957 DeSoto Fireflight with a factory 330-cubic-inch hemi and a four-barrel carb.

The car has a push-button automatic transmission.

“Donna and I found the car in Montana and drove it back. We saw the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone Park,” O’Brien said.

<p>A sticker on the dashboard of Bill O'Brien's 1934 International fire truck reads: “It's Never Too Late to Have a Happy Childhood.”</p><p>“You can grow old but not up,” said O'Brien, 71, a retired Philadelphia firefighter, as he operated the controls on his 11,000-pound bright red truck.</p><p>“My wife, Donna, and I drive the truck in the Ocala Christmas Parade, and we were just in the Williston Veterans Parade in November. We drive the truck around town, and when I mentored some youngsters, we used to treat them to rides. I've even used the truck in a few funerals,” O'Brien said.</p><p>The couple plans to drive the fire truck from Ocala to an emergency vehicle show in Jacksonville later this month. </p><p>The truck now has 4,364 original miles on the odometer, will cruise at about 55 to 60 miles per hour and gets about 7 to 8 miles per gallon, O'Brien said.</p><p>It was built in 1934 and delivered in 1936.</p><p>“The open cab and doors of the 1934 remind me of some of the equipment I served on,” O'Brien said, “I remember riding on the back of our trucks.” </p><p>This truck was used by the Luverne, Minn., fire department until 1961 and then sat outside until O'Brien found it and bought it.</p><p>He did a complete “body off” restoration less than 10 years ago, which took about 18 months. He replaced the original engine with one from a Chevrolet school bus.</p><p>“The truck is valued in the range of $25,000,” O'Brien said. </p><p>The truck, despite being outdated, could still get the job done at a fire, O'Brien insists. It has all the necessary gear, including a spotlight, bell, axes, fire extinguishers, ladders a 200-gallon water tank, a reel with a one-inch hose and a 500-gallon-per-minute rotary water pump with a four-inch intake, two-and-a-quarter-inch discharge and compound and pressure gauges to monitor the flow.</p><p>O'Brien, a native of Philadelphia, served with the city's fire department from 1963 through 1994, including a stint on the fire boat “Delaware” on the river of the same name.</p><p>O'Brien marked his 1934 International fire truck with the number 29 for the station he served with in Philadelphia. </p><p>“My great-great-grand uncle, David Humphries, was the first paid Philadelphia firefighter to be killed in the line of duty when his ladder collapsed in 1872,” O'Brien said.</p><p>O'Brien retired in 1995 and moved to southwest Ocala where they live today.</p><p>O'Brien's affinity for vehicles goes well beyond fire engines. He has restored several classic cars, including a 1951 Studebaker truck and a 1957 DeSoto chopped to half length.</p><p>Donna and Bill O'Brien team up on many of the restorations, with Donna doing the upholstery work.</p><p>One of their joint ventures has been her 1939 DeSoto Opera Coupe with a 345-cubic-inch hemi engine from a 1957 DeSoto Adventurer.</p><p>“There were only 257 of these models with the fold-up rear seats made,” O'Brien explained. The seats could be folded up during the week to accommodate businessmen's wares and then on weekends fold down for the kids,” O'Brien explained.</p><p>“I love the look of it,” Donna O'Brien said about long sweeping curves and art-deco type touches on the fenders of the 1939 DeSoto.</p><p>In the O'Brien's multi-car garage, next to the 1939 DeSoto, is a 1927 Model T Ford “no hood” style hot rod with a 255 cubic-inch Mercury engine topped by dual, two-barrel carbs. </p><p>Stickers from past shows where the “T” was displayed cover the inside of one door and several other areas.</p><p>One of the most recent additions to the O'Brien stable is a red and black factory-original 1957 DeSoto Fireflight with a factory 330-cubic-inch hemi and a four-barrel carb.</p><p>The car has a push-button automatic transmission.</p><p>“Donna and I found the car in Montana and drove it back. We saw the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone Park,” O'Brien said.</p>